


Playful as a Pussy Cat

by RDcantRead



Category: Queen (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Established Relationship, Fluff, Gift Fic, HalloQueen, Halloween, Halloween Costumes, M/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-17
Updated: 2020-10-17
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:08:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27061705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RDcantRead/pseuds/RDcantRead
Summary: John just revising for his mid-terms at the end of October. Roger has other plans.
Relationships: John Deacon/Roger Taylor
Comments: 1
Kudos: 16
Collections: HalloQueen





	Playful as a Pussy Cat

**Author's Note:**

  * For [starrydrowse](https://archiveofourown.org/users/starrydrowse/gifts).



> Just some fluff for the wonderful Starrydrowse - I hope you enjoy it and it lives up to your expectations!
> 
> Title from Killer Queen by Queen

It’s the time of the year when all the leaves turn red, orange and gold and the smell of ginger permeates the local Starbucks. It's when the soggy London weather comes out full force and soaks through shoes, clothes, bags and phones. There’s an excitement in the air as All Hallows Eve approaches and with it, the night time arrives sooner and sooner.

Students are frantically revising for Mid-Terms, though parties are still being held every night - Thursdays seem to be particularly popular this year. The anxiety of the students in no way decreases from the calming vibes and the - curiously juxtaposed - excitement of the spooky month.

John is not part of that general vibe - he's got enough on his plate without adding to it with a mostly inconsequential holiday. Don't get him wrong, he can see the appeal; he's dating Roger Taylor, TikTok famous Roger Taylor with enough personality and sunlight that no one else can match.

Queen - his, Roger, Brian and Freddie's rock band - has been booking a few gigs in some local clubs in Kensington and is doing well in general. Of course, there are arguments that last weeks, it's inevitable with their strong personalities to clash. But Halloween isn't really part of their vibe as a band, John doesn't think.

But that excitement is definitely felt in the flat – October for John always meant studying diligently for the approaching midterms, the familiar anxiety carving a way into his chest. It doesn’t seem to mean that this year as the flat is done up in various “spooky” decorations from fake spider webs to plastic skeletons hidden in the closet. 

John had never realised how seriously Roger took Halloween until he came home from a wet and tiresome day at university to find cheap plastic pumpkin fairy lights hung up over the windows, a purple throw blanket decorated with little white ghosts thrown over the hideous green-brown sofa and the whole flat covered top-to-bottom in miscellaneous Halloween decorations like the Ghost of Hallows Eve Present vomited all over it. 

He just wanted to sleep and maybe eat some Iceland frozen pizza (it was on sale, three for a quid) because neither of them even pretended to be able to cook. And then he was thrust into what seemed to be inspired by Halloween Town from Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas. 

Then the words came out of Roger’s – who was wearing a jarring neon orange pumpkin jacket – mouth, the dreaded words that John was already regretting agreeing to. “I think we should do a couples’ costume this year!” And the puppy-dog-grin for extra manipulation. John is sure that if Roger were a dog, his tail would be wagging so hard that it would start to hurt. 

John can’t say no to Roger, not when he is this enthusiastic about it, but that doesn’t mean that he has to enjoy dressing up in a ridiculous get-up – he’s not Freddie. But he’ll do what he must, he likes spending time with Roger and this isn’t too big of a sacrifice, right?

Wrong.

A couples costume may have been Roger's "Best Bonding Experience" - in Roger’s own words - and good fun, but John has never really been a Halloween person, or willing to do something as cringey as dressing up as an adult; let alone a  _ couples' costume. _

John has been dragged through every stall in Kensington, been subjected to hours of “brainstorming” sessions and been pestered at all times of the day. It’s two weeks into October and the day is sunny but cold, foggy mornings lead into miserable days and Halloween is fast approaching – along with mid-terms. Roger doesn’t seem keen on studying; his days are filled with thoughts about the imaginary couples' costume he and John will share. By this point, it’s really not going to happen.

Additionally, John's feeling a bit dodgy after eating a bad portion of chips at the local chilly that Veronica recommended to him the other day after his maths lecture when his stomach kept rumbling - Roger had destroyed the microwave in what he claims was a freak accident.

He's tired of the endless searching for ideas and materials - Roger's not this bad even when putting together costumes with Freddie, or making cosplays - but he's committed to supporting Roger's ridiculous ideas; even when he's exhausted from the constant running back and forth.

But John can appreciate Roger’s commitment to the idea; he’s slightly worried, true, but he can still appreciate it. Although, now that he thinks about it, he has noticed the frantic energy dying down a little bit day by day as Halloween creeps closer and closer. Roger’s not sleeping from thinking up ideas and drawing, admittedly bad, sketches of costumes and John’s sure that his performance in class is suffering.

Then it happens. The great lightbulb moment that John has come to dread in their nearly-a-year of dating; Roger knows what he’s doing. Then the old sewing machine is dug out from Freddie’s flat and old fabrics and clothes are being changed into a monstrous amalgamation of a costume. This is not going to end well for John. 

John's computing module isn't going well. Especially because of Roger's late-night rendezvous with the sewing machine and he seems to keep being hit with inspiration in the middle of the night and crawling out of bed just to jot it down. 

This results in John sluggishly attending his classes and being absolutely knackered all day. He just doesn't have the energy to devote to doing computing, which is just a pain - C# is kicking his arse, Python wasn't this bad when he learned it in high school.

It’s a week of Roger’s cryptic sneaking about around the costume, and a week until Halloween when John is called into their bedroom where Roger had set up camp around three days ago. The day is wet and rainy – rain pelts the windows of the flat and even though John had brought an umbrella with him to his lecture, he still ended up soaking wet when he got home. Roger had wrapped him in blankets and made his “famous” hot chocolate – he just microwaved milk and added store-bought Nesquik cocoa powder – and then ran off to finish his great project.

It’s dark now – seven pm is reasonable, right? – and John is feeling the uncontrollable urge to turn on Lord of the Rings again, despite watching it not too long ago; it’s best appreciated in the dark. He thinks Roger wouldn’t mind sitting down and watching the masterpiece with him, although Roger has a habit of correcting Peter Jackson’s vision of the novel along with debates around Faramir’s character - including quotations from Tolkien’s text.

While he’s arguing with himself whether to get up and turn the TV on and put in the DVD – extended edition, of course. And it has to be on DVD, it's the better way to watch, putting it on using Netflix is cheating – Roger calls him into the bedroom to see the costume he had sewn and designed and “put his heart and soul into” – Roger’s words, not his.

Reluctantly, he pushes himself off the sofa and drags himself into the bedroom, blankets still draped around his shoulders and still holding the hot mug of chocolate. 

He opens the door to find an immaculately cleaned room nothing like the safety hazard he saw when he was last in the room this morning. Roger is sitting on the bed and beside him lies fabric that looks a bit like his mum’s old curtains. 

“Surprise!” Roger is enthusiastic, but John can still detect a bit of uncertainty in his voice like he was nervous to see John’s reaction to the costume, “I’ve finally finished my magnum opus of Halloween costumes! And you, my love, get to be the first to see it!” 

John walks up to the bed and gives Roger a chaste kiss as a greeting. He turns towards the costume that is draped over the bed and lifts it up to look at it closely. 

He pivots back towards Roger, “It that…?”

“Yep!” A nervous smile graces Roger’s face.

“…Really.” His tone comes out flat and monotone and the smile that Roger had worked to keep on his face slipped away, leaving his face open and vulnerable.

“You don’t like it,” Roger states calmly, looking up at him, his eyes filled with hurt and insecurity. John really doesn’t want to hurt Roger – in any way – but he can’t imagine wearing this on Halloween. Roger continues, “I… I even made a TikTok of me sewing it,” he attempts to break the tension. 

It works, drawing a snort out of John until he’s laughing at the absolutely inappropriate statement. He calms down a bit and sneaks a kiss from Roger, “I love it, even if I have to be dressed like it’s the seventies.”

Truth be told, the seventies are his favourite decade - aesthetically, of course, rampant homophobia and racism were way too prevalent back then - so dressing like its the seventies is definitely not a bad thing.

“I knew you would! I thought I’d finally put my costume making skills to use and instead of making cosplay make something that would make you happy! I thought at first to make us monsters or cryptids but you wouldn’t really go out in something like that, so I thought of this!” Roger’s excitement comes back with a vengeance, and John’s heart warms. 

The costumes are lovely, and visibly well made - John can't help wondering how much this cost Roger- but nevermind, it doesn't do to dwell on things that can't be changed. 

The rain seems to get louder as Roger waits for a response from John, the moment if tension captured perfectly in the sound of the rain hitting the window - though it is relaxing when he's not stressed out.

“...I would have worn it even if I hated it, love. Just to see you happy.” And then Roger jumps up and hugs John fervently - so much that both of them fall over onto the floor in a heap of laughter.

A thumping at the door breaks them out of their hysteria. They scramble up from the floor, bumping into each other a few times in the process, and right their clothes. The knocking resumes lasting longer this time; they hurry to open the door to their flat, still infested with giggles.

The door of the flat jolts open - a dodgy lock and badly cut door will do that even for a "Professional Door Opener" - again, Roger's words, not John's - and there Freddie stands, his outfit looking fit for a night out, make-up on point, new-looking platform boots and tight leather pants topped off with a matching jacket.

"Hello, my darlings!" Freddie greets cheerfully, his half-London patios colouring his words uniquely. He barges in without waiting for a response, and immediately him and Roger hug enthusiastically. "How did your idea play out, Roger dear?" 

John can't help but butt in, "Wait, you knew what he was planning?!" He hopes his incredulity comes through.

"Sure, Love, me and Fred don't keep any secrets from each other," Roger answers John, his arms still around Freddie - he should have known, Roger and Freddie are the best of friends.

"It went well Freddie," John answers Freddie, "I should have known you had something to do with it," a "hey" emerges quietly from Roger.

Freddie turns to Roger to give him a snug look, "I told you it would be fine, didn't I?" 

"...yes, you did." Roger concedes after a brief staring match. 

John is suddenly glad that they aren't paying much attention to him, as his eyes start to water. He knew Roger was serious about their relationship, but it's in that moment that John knows that Roger  _ loves  _ him - that he wanted to make the perfect couples costume to share a part of himself with John.

And John loves him too.


End file.
